Temptation

A perpetual state of war exists between Christ, the champion of God, and the Devil, the prince of this world (Gen. 3:15). Matthew 4:1–11 tells of one of Christ’s great victories over the Devil and the power of sin. At the end of a long period of fasting, the Devil confronts Jesus with three temptations.
In the first of these temptations, the Devil uses the same tactic he used on Eve in the garden of Eden. “If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread” (4:3 kjv and hereafter). Satan is referring to the words spoken …
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It’s an odd story. John the Baptist has just baptized Jesus. God has just spoken from heaven, saying, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.” We would expect that the next item on the agenda would be the beginning of Jesus’ ministry. Instead, we read that the Spirit of God leads Jesus into the wilderness to be tempted by the Devil. That’s strange. Why is Jesus subjected to testing in the wilderness by the Devil immediately following His baptism and immediately prior to the beginning of His ministry and the calling of His disciples? Is it merely …
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If ever there were a free man, Adam was he. And all he and his wife had to do was exercise that freedom to the glory of God. But somewhere, and at some time, disobedience seemed like a viable option. Scripture isn’t exactly clear how and when sin crept into the minds of that first couple. All we see is Eve suddenly giving a greater value to the tree, its fruit, and wisdom — over against God’s word. This was not a simple grasp at more information, as if mere “knowledge” was lacking in them both. Rather, this was a …
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